Press Release: Quarter 2 2024
The Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) has released its Q2 2024 circulation movement report, providing valuable insights into the performance of various newspaper and magazine categories.
The data highlights year-over-year (YoY) and quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) changes across different segments of the South African market.
Daily Newspapers:
The circulation for daily newspapers in Q2 stood at 208,810, reflecting an 18.0% decline YoY.
However, there was a positive movement QoQ with a 1.2% increase.
Weekly Newspapers:
Weekly newspapers reported a circulation of 118,557 in Q2, showing an 11.9% decrease YoY and a 4.4% decline QoQ.
Weekend Newspapers:
The weekend segment saw a circulation of 268,125 in Q2, experiencing a significant 26.3% drop YoY and an 8.3% decrease QoQ.
Local Newspapers:
Local newspapers saw a circulation of 160,641 in Q2, marking a substantial 48.9% increase YoY. The increase in YoY circulation is from the removal of the Hybrid category by the ABC and the incorporation of the respective titles onto the Local newspaper category in Quarter 1 of 2024. There was a slight decline of 1.5% QoQ.
Free News:
The free news category reported a circulation of 4,524,628 in Q2, showing a 16.7% decrease YoY and a 15.2% decline QoQ. A publication with a high circulation has ceased the print edition and migrated to a digital distribution model. This contributed to the huge drop in overall circulation for the quarter.
Total Newspapers:
The total circulation for all newspaper categories combined was 5,280,761 in Q2, reflecting a 17.3% decline YoY and a 13.7% decrease QoQ.
Consumer Magazines:
The circulation for consumer magazines in Q2 2024 stood at 929,207, reflecting a 3.2% increase YoY and an 11.2% rise QoQ. This positive growth indicates a steady demand for consumer magazines with new members also contributing to the circulation growth.